Big Idea: What do you want? This is a difficult questions? Mankind is a conflicted being. One thing is for sure, in the natural man we don’t want to love our enemies. Jesus transforms us and makes loving our enemies not only something we are capable of doing but something we want to do.
Proverbs 20:5 (ESV) — 5 The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.
The Gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ re-ordering our desires so that we want the very things that God wants, in the new man.
What _______________________ we do?
Luke 6:27–28 (ESV) 27 “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.
Loving your enemy is to desire what is best for those who want what is worst for you.
What does Jesus mean in verses 29-30? You should reject your initial reaction, which is defense, and act for the benefit of your enemies. You should act, not react. With a settled mind and spirit, you should ask yourself how might I help this one who wants to harm me? How might I provide for them at the cost of my own provisions?
Why don’t we do what we ____________________ do?
Luke 6:32 (ESV) 32 “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.
What Jesus is calling for here is something super-natural. It is something that goes beyond what we are naturally inclined to do.
The reason we love our enemies, hear this if you have ears to hear, is because God loves his enemies!
Why __________________ we do what we ________________ do?
Luke 6:36 (ESV) 36 Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
Romans 5:6–8 (ESV) 6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Jesus Christ, in his great love for us, willingly came to this earth to die for his enemies. The very ones who conspired against him, who ripped his beard from his face, who hoisted him up on a cross to die of asphyxiation, who crucified not only an innocent man, but their greatest benefactor. To those very ones, JESUS… GIVES… ETERNAL… LIFE.
Why should we love our enemies? Not only because Jesus has done it before us, more than that, Jesus does it in us and through us.
John 3:16 (ESV) 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Questions to Consider
In what ways is Jesus calling you to love your enemies (those who hurt you or offend you)? What might this look like tangibly?
What does it look like to identify with Jesus in loving them?
